HQ 083605: Determining fiber content of a garment under the TSUSA

Native CBP ruling rendition. Applicability is fact-specific; modification/revocation relationships and original publisher date are retained. Publisher sentinel year0001 means unknown date, not a historical legal adoption.

                                     HQ 083605

                                      March 3, 1989


             CLA-2 CO:R:C:G   083605 PR

             CATEGORY:  Classification

             TARIFF NO:  (no tariff number used

             Mrs. Doreen Wai
             Hong Kong Economic & Trade Affairs
             British Embassy
             1233 20th Street, N.W. Suite 504
             Washington, D.C. 20036

             RE:  Determining fiber content of a garment under the TSUSA

             Dear Mrs. Wai:

                 This is in reply to your letter of January 30, 1989,
             concerning the fiber content of certain pants imported prior
             to January 1, 1989.

             FACTS:

                 Pan Pacific Wholesalers Inc. imported six shipments of
             women's pants which were shipped from Hong Kong in 1987 with
             category 847 export licenses.  Customs officers at the port of
             Los Angeles required textile restraint category 348 licenses
             because a Customs laboratory determined the fiber content of
             style 578 to be 48 percent ramie, 39 percent cotton, and 13
             percent man-made fibers, and the fiber content of style 1572
             to be 49 percent ramie, 42 percent cotton, and 9 percent man-
             made fibers.

                 You believe that the Customs laboratory incorrectly
             included pockets in calculating the fiber composition of the
             pants.  According to a Hong Kong laboratory, fabrics which
             were used in making the outer shells of styles 578 and 1572
             were analyzed and determined to be 54.7 percent ramie and 45.3
             percent cotton, and 53.8 percent ramie and 46.2 percent
             cotton, respectively.  The pockets were determined to be 65
             percent polyester and 35 percent rayon.  Hong Kong's practice
             is not to include trimmings and pockets in determining fiber
             content of garments.  Accordingly, it is Hong Kong's position
             that the export licenses for textile restraint category 847
             should have been accepted by Customs officers in Los Angeles.















                                          - 2 -


             ISSUE:

                 The issue presented is whether, prior to January 1, 1989,
             textile restraint categories were determined based on the
             fiber content of the imported garment's outer shell or on the
             fiber content of the entire garment.

             LAW AND ANALYSIS:

                 Prior to January 1, 1989, merchandise imported into the
             United States was subject to the provisions of the Tariff
             Schedules of the United States Annotated (TSUSA).  Under that
             tariff system, both Schedule 3, Headnote 10(a)(ii), and
             Schedule 3, Statistical Note 3(a)(ii), provided that the term
             "subject to cotton restraints" referred to articles in which
             the cotton and man-made fibers equaled or exceeded 50 percent
             by weight of the fibers in the article and the cotton
             components equaled or exceeded the man-made fiber components.
             This is in consonance with Article 12 of the Arrangement
             Regarding International Trade in Textiles (MFA), under the
             General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which refers to those
             fibers which represent 50 percent or more by weight "of the
             product."

                 The United States has, under the TSUSA, consistently
             considered the weight of an entire garment, including pockets
             and trim, in determining the applicability of our
             international textile restraint agreements.

                 The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
             Annotated (HTSUSA), which became effective January 1, 1989,
             utilizes different rules of classification.  Those rules
             generally require that pockets and trim not be regarded in the
             classification of garments.  However, since the merchandise in
             question was imported prior to the effective date of the
             HTSUSA, the rules in effect under the TSUSA govern.

                 Where there is a conflict in the analysis of imported
             merchandise between a private laboratory and a Customs
             laboratory, and we are satisfied that the Customs laboratory
             utilized the proper method of analysis, the Customs Service
             will adhere to the results of the Customs laboratory.  In this
             instance, we also note that the Customs laboratory tested
             samples of the actual imported merchandise, while the private
             laboratory tested fabrics that were stated to be the fabrics
             used in the imported pants.















                                          - 3 -




             HOLDING:

                 On the basis of the above, we conclude that the Customs
             officers at the port of Los Angeles properly assigned textile
             category 348 to the imported pants.

                                           Sincerely,




                                           John Durant, Director
                                           Commercial Rulings Division